The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of satsuma mandarin tree, botanically known as Citrus reticulata ‘Gremoy79’, referred to hereafter by its cultivar name, ‘Gremoy79’.
The new cultivar was derived from a controlled breeding program conducted by the Inventors in San Antonio, Tex., U.S.A. The overall purpose of the breeding program is the creation of Satsuma (mandarins) and tangerine hybrids that exhibit the fruit quality of Satsumas and the cold tolerance of select cold hardy tangerine varieties.
‘Gremoy79’ was selected by the Inventors in 2005 as a single unique tree that resulted from embryo rescue of a seed obtained from a cross made by the Inventors in 1998 between Citrus reticulata ‘Changsha’ (not patented), a tangerine, and an unnamed seedling of Citrus reticulata var. unshiu (syn, Citrus unshiu, not patented), a manderin, as the male parent.
Asexual propagation of the new cultivar was first accomplished by stem cuttings in San Antonio, Tex. in 2005 by one of the Inventors. Asexual propagation by stem cuttings has been determined that the characteristics of this cultivar are stable and are true to type in successive generations.